JACKIE Tremayne is living proof to all the Generation X’ers out there who think their chance of becoming a world-class athlete has passed them by that it’s never too late.
The 45-year-old, who says she hardly ever exercised until seven years ago, will soon be swimming, cycling and running alongside the fittest men and women on the planet.
She has qualified to compete in next month’s Ironman World Championship in Hawaii - considered by many as the ultimate test of human endurance.
Tremayne will complete a 4km swim, 180km bike ride and 42km run through the tough ocean waves and lava-covered terrain on the island of Kona in a race she expects will take her about 12 hours.
It is a far cry from her days of doing little or no physical activity at all, and trying to shed the excess kilograms by joining Weight Watchers.
Tremayne grew up on a farm in Tasmania in a family she says was “not very athletic’’.
Though she played a little bit of netball as a child and indoor cricket in her early 20s, she never really excelled at any sport and eventually gave up trying.
The turning point in her life came at the age of 38, when she was studying nursing at La Trobe University Bendigo.
“I joined a gym at the uni and talked my husband into joining as well, because he was starting to put on some weight . . . well, we both were,’’ she says.
Five years ago, husband Russell decided to challenge himself by entering a triathlon and, after watching on from the sidelines, Tremayne reckoned she might as well give it a try, too.
A “little bit of running and riding’’ soon gave way to a concentrated training regime, and by 2007 Tremayne had completed her first ironman race.
She has since finished two ultra-distance events in Port Macquarie, two in Busselton, WA, and the Ironman New Zealand in March, when she came ninth in the 45-49 years age group and qualified for the world titles.
“I have got a very jealous husband now,’’ she says.
“He really wants to do Hawaii, as most ironman competitors do.’’
Russell will accompany his wife to Kona on October 2, ahead of the gruelling race on October 10, but will have to be content with cheering her on from the crowd.
Their two boys - Christopher, 17, and Alexander, 12 - usually go along as well, but will remain at home this time around.
Tremayne says she owes a lot to her husband and children for their constant support of her endeavours.
The Bendigo Health Care Group nurse is the only local athlete among the 34 Australian women taking part in the world championship event. It is destined to be a highlight of her sporting career so far.
“There’s nothing left to achieve after you have finished the Hawaii ironman,’’ she says.
In the early days, Tremayne slowly built up her fitness, starting her exercise regime by going to the gym three times a week, then riding her bike 2km to and from the facility.
As Russell increased his exercise program, Jackie aimed to emulate his feats - if he went out for a long bike ride or jog, she’d wait a few days then try to do the same.
“It nearly killed me the first time I tried to run 5km, but you get used to it’’ she laughs.
“You just keep going and slowly get fitter and fitter.
“I used to call myself the Duracell Bunny, because that’s what I felt like when I was out running around doing 30km or so.’’
In the lead up to Kona, her weekly training routine has extended out to 27 hours, covering about 560km on the bike and 65km of running.
She also swims at the Eaglehawk YMCA pool, and is appreciative of the staff there and her swim squad coach Tony, who have helped improve her technique in her weakest triathlon discipline.
She is also grateful to fellow Bendigo Triathlon Club members for their mentoring, training help and constant encouragement of her endeavours. Tremayne says Bendigo is a great place to live because it has great routes for running and cycling training, and a very supportive triathlon community.
She hopes her success can inspire other women to take up triathlon, or any other sport for that matter, “because you gain so much socially and training-wise out of it, and feeling so fit and healthy is just fantastic, too’’.
“You don’t even have to be fast - it’s about having fun, enjoying yourself, meeting people and becoming fit and healthy,’’ she says.
“There are 1600 or so people in a race, but ultimately it’s about yourself and bettering your own time.
“At the start, neither of us knew anything about triathlons and if you had asked us six years ago, I wouldn’t have had a clue.
“But it is a great sport and we love it - being so fit is fantastic, and what I especially love about the Ironman events is that you are competing with and making friends with the top athletes in the world.’’
Her message to other couch potatoes who dream of making it big in the sporting world but figure they’ve left their run too late is simple.
“That chance has never passed you by,’’ she says.
“If 70-year-old women can compete in Hawaii - and they do - anyone can take up this sport.
“You have just got to start by putting one foot in front of the other and build it up from there.
“If I can do it, anyone can.’’
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